What "All Mountain West" Skis to Try?

[locknload]

This thread is surreal...it is such a microcosm of this board...lol. I love how far off the reservation it has drifted to answer his supposedly "simple" question of his All Mtn West holy grail. I, for one, appreciate it as its almost made me buy 3 more pair of skis.....

 

[tomahawkins]

@Tony S , one more to pick up on close out.

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[James]

The end…

Next up, Tony’s TR from CO.

I’m very concerned he’ll alter the weather pattern downward.

 

[DebbieSue]

So, I will be renting demos tomorrow at A-basin. I thought I'd benefit from all of @Tony S research and indecision and just have what he's having, but alas, no Blaze, no Nela on the list.
I'm hoping to get on a pair of Sheeva 9s one of these days, but they only have BP88, and that's the one ski I have.
I'd like to try something a bit more surf-y, turn-y.
Here's the Abasin demo list for women's skis. I'm neither burly nor a charger so wouldn't venture into the men's.
Rossignol Experience 86 Carbon W
Rossignol Black Ops Rallybird W
Rossignol Black Ops Stargazer W
Blizzard Black Pearl 88
Icelantic Riveter 95
Icelantic Riveter 104
Dynastar M-Pro 99 W
Line Pandora 94
Volkl Secret 96
Any thoughts anyone? I'll prob do what any reasonable skier would do and go with the Pandoras for the fab graphics.

 

[Philpug]

So, I will be renting demos tomorrow at A-basin. I thought I'd benefit from all of @Tony S research and indecision and just have what he's having, but alas, no Blaze, no Nela on the list.
I'm hoping to get on a pair of Sheeva 9s one of these days, but they only have BP88, and that's the one ski I have.
I'd like to try something a bit more surf-y, turn-y.
Here's the Abasin demo list for women's skis. I'm neither burly nor a charger so wouldn't venture into the men's.
Rossignol Experience 86 Carbon W
Rossignol Black Ops Rallybird W
Rossignol Black Ops Stargazer W
Blizzard Black Pearl 88
Icelantic Riveter 95
Icelantic Riveter 104
Dynastar M-Pro 99 W
Line Pandora 94
Volkl Secret 96
Any thoughts anyone? I'll prob do what any reasonable skier would do and go with the Pandoras for the fab graphics. View attachment 168133

Stargazer 94
M/Pro 99W
Secret 96

 

[KingGrump]

So, I will be renting demos tomorrow at A-basin. I thought I'd benefit from all of @Tony S research and indecision and just have what he's having, but alas, no Blaze, no Nela on the list.
I'm hoping to get on a pair of Sheeva 9s one of these days, but they only have BP88, and that's the one ski I have.
I'd like to try something a bit more surf-y, turn-y.
Here's the Abasin demo list for women's skis. I'm neither burly nor a charger so wouldn't venture into the men's.
Rossignol Experience 86 Carbon W
Rossignol Black Ops Rallybird W
Rossignol Black Ops Stargazer W
Blizzard Black Pearl 88
Icelantic Riveter 95
Icelantic Riveter 104
Dynastar M-Pro 99 W
Line Pandora 94
Volkl Secret 96
Any thoughts anyone? I'll prob do what any reasonable skier would do and go with the Pandoras for the fab graphics. View attachment 168133

Secret 96. That is one smooth ski.

 

[Tony S]

Secret 96. That is one smooth ski.

That will be an interesting experiment.

 

[KingGrump]

That will be an interesting experiment.

The Secret 96 and the M6 are the same ski with different top sheet. The M6 is softer than the M5. The tip is very soft for an easy entry into the turn. Pivots well underfoot from the middle of the ski. Huge sweet spot. Luxurious in the bumps.

But it's probably still too planky for you since it's a Mantra.

 

[DebbieSue]

Hmm…didn’t love Secret 90something 20/21 when I demo’d it. Preferred BP88 which I bought. That was on NE hard pack..but maybe it’s been updated. Liked what I read about Stargazer 94…maybe they’ll let me swap out and experiment if I can manage not to get lost skiing w other Skitalkers.

 

[Philpug]

But it's probably still too planky for you since it's a Mantra

But, the sizing is scaled or in Volkl-ese "taylored", so the smaller sizes won't be nearly as blocky as they were previously. I also think the 3D sidecut on the Volkls has made a huge difference.

 

[Philpug]

Hmm…didn’t love Secret 90something 20/21 when I demo’d it. Preferred BP88 which I bought. That was on NE hard pack..but maybe it’s been updated. Liked what I read about Stargazer 94…maybe they’ll let me swap out and experiment if I can manage not to get lost skiing w other Skitalkers.

The old Secret 92 was a 92 mm Mantra M5, not my favorite Volkl either.

It is a shame we aren't going to be there, we have quite a few skis here that might float your boat.

 

[KingGrump]

But, the sizing is scaled or in Volkl-ese "taylored", so the smaller sizes won't be nearly as blocky as they were previously. I also think the 3D sidecut on the Volkls has made a huge difference.

Totally buy in on the market speak. The M6/Secret 96 is definitely not your father's Mantra. But we are talking about Herman's Tony's head here.

 

[Tony S]

The Secret 96 and the M6 are the same ski with different top sheet. The M6 is softer than the M5. The tip is very soft for an easy entry into the turn. Pivots well underfoot from the middle of the ski. Huge sweet spot. Luxurious in the bumps.

But it's probably still too planky for you since it's a Mantra.

No, I'd try the M6, for sure.

 

[DebbieSue]

Stargazer 94
M/Pro 99W
Secret 96

Stargazer 94, 162s- marker griffon. Took these out first. On Kevin draughtguy and Hilary’s fav green groomer, Sundance. Like wearing paper plates instead of skis…ok, maybe Chinet. No edge grip. Back they went after one run.

Secret 96, 162 -Look bindings. Heavy skis, heavy bindings …but these held an edge, turned easily, hugged the hill. Confidence builder in unfamiliar terrain and highly variable snow. Kept me forward in a good way. Was going to keep them all day but @SBrown advised, “why not try that MPro 99W

MPro 99W, 162 w Squires. Much lighter than the Secrets/Look. Had to get used to them (maybe starting out on Pallivicini was asking too much? Thanks @Gary Stolt for hanging with me) Very easy to initiate turns, held an edge, and quick edge to edge despite being the widest I’ve ever been on. But…less secure than Secret 96, or my trusty BP88s 20/21for that matter. Did like them on Ramrod slush bumps late aft. By then I was better able to keep them under me.

never bothered with Line Pandora.

The winner…Secret 96.
@KingGrump IS always right.
But they ARE heavy for carrying from the car or locker, in gondola/tram line or around an airport. With DIN 5, could prob pare down to a lesser binding

Would still like to try Nela or Blaze…
Thanks @Philpug @KingGrump for the guidance for a fun day of demoing.

 

[Eric@ict]

I just finished the season on Atomic Maveric 88TI. All season in Colorado and absolutely love this ski. Super fun all over the mountain. If you are still looking, this is one to go demo if you can find it.

 

[applecart]

@DebbieSue I really liked the Secret 96 when I demoed them at Alta - not as much as the DPS Pagoda94 and others I tried, but the price is better!

 

[lisamamot]

Up at the Loaf for closing weekend. Skiing today was good. At $369.00 for brand new never skied demos with bindings, I went ahead and bought the Blaze 94s. They are nice skis - very reminiscent of the 90Eight / 100Eight, which is not a bad thing. Almost reverse camber. I can bend them, they are very intuitive. The tune seems good, thank God. Tomorrow will be warmer and sunnier, so hoping for some slush bumps, but not counting on it. Some of the natural snow trails are nominally open, but honestly they're done. Too much shrubbery. See pic.

Basically I decided that demo season is over, and that price increases loom next fall. With this in mind, before I got up here, I ordered a pair of 21-22 Nela 96s, flat. The new '23 ones are over a grand. Brown Santa should have dropped them off today. Double jeopardy. We'll have to see how it all shakes out.

@aveski will be up tomorrow.

View attachment 167942 View attachment 167943

Ooh, cannot wait to hear what you think about the Nela 96!

 

[Tony S]

Ooh, cannot wait to hear what you think about the Nela 96!

Well, it's gonna be a while, since they're not mounted yet and my season is over tomorrow.

 

[Tony S]

In the Mother's Day Gathering thread, @luliski said,

I’m curious about which skis @Tony S is using. Looks like a fun trip!

I've been on the Völkl Blaze 94 @172cm all week. It's a very fun and easy ski, but also rewarding. Conditions have suited it well. More detail later.

 

[ScottB]

Interested to hear your thoughts on the ski. I was considering this ski, but in a 186 cm length and as an AT ski with tech (pin) bindings on it. I was thinking about a very light weight AT setup and my local shop had a pair for $350. The weight in the 186 length is around 1650 g which is light, (yours are listed as 1510 g) which is slightly heavy for my use, but is very very light for an Alpine ski (normally around 2000 g). For you Tony, a pair of shifts would have been a good (but expensive) choice for bindings. I hope the ski has enough suspension for what you want. In the conditions you have now, it should be excellent. I use my AT ski, 108 cm Blizzard Zero G 1750 g, as a resort ski in slush and it does great. If the snow is hard pack, it only comes out with skins on it, and I choose something else to ski. Hard pack, high speed, and lumpy is not its sweet spot.